The wheel of fortune with attractive gifts and cash prizes, by means of which Klaus Kunststofftechnik invited young people to the booth, was also very well received. Thanks to an AI project at the Innonet collective booth, pupils and students were able to immerse themselves in their dream careers. The association of plastics manufacturers, Plastics Europe Deutschland, also arrived at a thoroughly positive conclusion regarding the campaign for attracting young talent. “Educational work is essential for introducing young people to science and technology. And this is why it’s so great to be able to use a trade fair to offer pupils insights into real-life practice,” emphasises Alexander Kronimus, managing director of Plastics Europe Deutschland. On twelve trade fair tours organised by the association, pupils were able to experience up close how plastics are produced, processed and recycled - from granulate to product and back again. “I hope that once again today we’ve been able to inspire lots of pupils to consider training or studying for a technical profession,” says Tanja Rühl, education officer at Plastics Europe Deutschland.
Highly interested young people with a thirst for technical knowledge
It seems that this goal has been achieved and that the young trade fair visitors have been inspired: “I’m looking forward to learning about new plastics processes today,” said a young guest from Austria. “I’m particularly interested in new technologies for injection moulding machines,” said another young man. One of the pupils was also very excited about what the day would bring: “We’re excited to see what the companies have to show us. We don’t know that much about plastics yet and we’re hoping to go home with more knowledge.” There can be no doubt that this was indeed the case. Career Friday served as an excellent basis for making specific decisions: “We’re at a technical school for mechanical engineering,” said one young student. “Next year we can choose either plastics technology, environmental technology or automation technology. We’re attending the trade fair today in order to make the decision easier.”
The organisers arranged six tours with selected topics, each of which wound its way through the exhibition halls twice on Career Friday: 1) “Circular Economy: From Granulate to Product and Back Again”, 2) “The Wonderful World of Plastics Throughout the Value Chain”, 3) “Designing for Recycling and Climate-Friendly Plastics Production”, 4) “Why the Plastics Industry is so Important for Achieving Climate Goals”, 5) “A Journey Through the Plastics Industry - Between Energy Efficiency and Sustainability”, and 6) “The Plastics Industry: Tomorrow’s Climate Heroes are Working Here Now”.
Thanks to all organisers and participants!
“This day was a very special experience,” summarises Georg Knauer, who co-organised Career Day for trade fair promoters P. E. Schall and accompanied visitors through the exhibition centre as one of the tour guides. “Interest was enormous and genuine right from the outset, and what the exhibitors and other stakeholders achieved here deserves a great deal of respect.” The appealing and coherent overall concept, including a Carrer Day guide, flags, video tools, demonstrations, T-shirts, caps and a raffle for a zeppelin flight, helped to create a lively and entertaining atmosphere. “The young people will take something lasting back home with them,” points out Knauer. “Conversations in the near future with family and friends will revolve around this experience, which will contribute to a better understanding of plastics and their great importance.”
“We were delighted to experience this first Career Friday at Fakuma in Friedrichshafen,” says Bettina Schall, managing director of trade fair promoters P. E. Schall, summarising the campaign. “I would like to express my sincere thanks to all exhibitors, key players and all of the young participants for their respective contributions, and for their interest in this campaign,” emphasises Bettina Schall. The topics of plastics, plastics processing, technology and circular economy will now resonate in classrooms, lecture halls and workshops. “We’ve succeeded in sparking enthusiasm for the topic of plastics, and I hope that this day will bear much fruit for the future.” Mould your dreams, mould your future! We were very happy to support Career Friday and look forward to seeing all participants and guests again at the 30th Fakuma here in Friedrichshafen from the 13th through the 17th of October, 2026!”
